Here we are, at the start of Marvel’s relaunch campaign that they’ve dubbed “Marvel NOW!” The decision to do this was certainly influenced by their Distinguished Competition’s efforts at a reboot, even though they’ve gone about it in a different way. Keeping continuity going and brand new creative teams and number ones on the books is their angle and the first batch of relaunched titles are here. I’ll be doing my best to review each new title as it comes out and I hope you look forward to my analysis.

Deadpool #1

Deadpool is the kind of character that has just snowballed in popularity since his creation. Many characters hit a popular point with fans and then falter off as they don’t get much use, but since Deadpool’s debut in 1991, he hasn’t stopped appearing in comics let alone his own titles. He is a staple of the Marvel Universe and one that shows no sign of slowing down, but I will confess that he’s not my favorite. I haven’t read much of Deadpool and I attribute that to a lack of interest and the overenthusiasm of some fans. So when Marvel decided to relaunch the character with comedians-turned-comic writers Gerry Duggan and Brian Posehn, I knew I would be reading it.

Standing behind this book took a lot of courage on Marvel’s part. The plot for this first arc is easily one of the most potentially offensive and out there stories they’ve done in recent time and I applaud them for letting this hit stores, and it doesn’t hurt that it’s damn good. So let me sell it to you in two words: Zombie Presidents. Even though it’s still lumped into the category of ‘Superhero,’ this is one of the most original and fun to read comics I’ve picked up all year. The jokes are perfect, the violence is over the top, and it maintains the tone that people have come to love about Deadpool.

The thing that surprised me the most about this comic though is the artwork. When the cover by Geof Darrow and Peter Doherty was originally released, not everyone was crazy about it. Trust me when I say that Tony Moore’s work on this title is some of his best yet. He captures the carnage and gore of Deadpool’s fights perfect and includes unreal amounts of detail into each panel. You wouldn’t think a comic that has zombie Presidents, four armed dinosaurs, and Deadpool would have really stunning and beautiful artwork, but it does. Plus Tony Moore artwork should always be in color.

Now since I’m not the best scholar for Deadpool in the world, I could be in a minority here, but I think this is the best way to take the character and reintroduce him to the world. Many will lament at the changes to the character, whose inner monologues are notably absent here, but why say in three speech bubbles what you can say in one? This was definitely added to my pull sheet today, I drank the kool-aid.